On the first warm and sunny day of the year, Washington, D.C., Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School principal Sharon Riggs needs one more substitute teacher. Victor Kennedy, the father of the schools secretary, agrees to teach the seventh-grade American-history class for the day and tells the students about the Tuskegee Airmen. During World War II, the Tuskegee Airmen were the first black men allowed into combat, flying over 1,500 missions over the course of the war and winning a significant battle against segregation at home. Young readers will experience for themselves the triumphant pride of these men in serving their country.